Rossy Ogawa Opens Up on Mai Sakurai’s Departure From Marigold

By: Lewis Carlan

After being part of the Marigold roster for over two years, Mai Sakurai competed in her final bout for the promotion on Oct. 24th at GRAND DESTINY 2026. In her final match for Marigold, Sakurai teamed with Natsumi Showzuki & Erina Yamanaka and they defeated Chanyota, Diana Strong & Mila Smidt.

Sakurai is now no longer part of the Marigold roster is will be taking time off to deal with injuries and medical conditions.

Rossy Ogawa spoke to reporters following the conclusion of Marigold GRAND DESTINY 2026 and was asked if he had words for Mai Sakurai. Ogawa admitted he wanted her to retire as part of the Marigold roster but she chose her own path.

From Rossy Ogawa:

“Honestly, I wanted her to retire right here, but it is the path she chose. There is nothing more to say than that. She worked hard, so I think she should take a long rest.”

Photo Credit: DSF Marigold

In addition, Ogawa spoke on the difference in direction between Mai Sakurai and Marigold. Ogawa stated that big gap between Marigold’s evaluation of Sakurai versus her own self-evaluation had occurred.

From Rossy Ogawa:

“It’s not so much that it can’t be made public, but rather that a considerable gap opened up between the company’s evaluation of her [Mai Sakurai] and her own self-evaluation. That’s what it comes down to. Though we evaluated her quite highly. After doing this for two or three years, it’s only natural for turnover to happen. Of course, someone like Mayu Iwatani is a different story altogether. Once you reach that level, anything you do becomes news. Well, everyone who leaves has their own individual reasons, and everyone has high ambitions.”

While Sakurai is expected to away from the ring for some time, it is unclear what path she will take once and if she returns to in-ring competition. Will look to join a rival promotion or will she compete as a freelancer? Only time will tell.

(H/T goes to meraWRESTLING for all English quote translations)